MrJorge

Thanks Adrienne. Another question regarding train: Can I use clicker and the verbal mark (let’s say a “yes”) at the same time? In case I ever forget the clicker I can just go on the verbal mark?

Hi Cynthia. You have to train bite inhibition. And this involves a few things. I will detail the steps bellow. The dog needs to understand that “biting” on us is unacceptable but you need to replace this behaviour with something else. So, my approach would be as follow: - when he is playing with you give him a chew toy so he can actually bite on something. If he is biting on you immediately make a desaproval sound (“ouch”) and move the dog to a “boring” area free of stimuli, free of toys etc... ignore him, don’t give him eye contact. And leave him there for a small period of time. 5minutes/10minutes. so he starts associating the bite to the end of fun. Bring him back and start over. You will be doing this a lot initially. So don’t loose hope. If you use a crate be careful using the crate for this so they don’t use a negative association. An ex pen is ideal for this. Or a fenced/confined area where he can’t wonder off and find fun doing something else. - train bite inhibition. In one hand show him a treat he likes and immediately close that hand. He will probably start biting on it. Let him go on funtill he starts giving up. Back to just sniffing or licking your hand. When this happens immediately mark the behaviour (verbal mark/clicker) and give him a treat with your other hand (helps if you keep the other hand hidden behind your back). If you see he is making progress you can start introducing the command “gentle” so you can use it in future if he bites on you. - having a good basic obedience training foundation helps as you can also use other cues (like a solid sit) when this is happening to shift his focus. - having a black kong toy (for heavy chewers) helps. Let him chew on something he is allowed to. Let us know if that helps. And see what Adrienne says about it Jorge

Hi Jeanette. This could be for a number of reasons: - Your diet schedule (time you feed your dog/ how often/ etc..) - Quantity (how much per day vs his weight) - What do you feed him. - Feeding technique (do you leave food out all day, etc....) - Changes in diet. (How long have you been feeding him what you are at the moment.) After all this information people will be able to give you a better constructed advise. Food is definitely the best way to start training a behavior but dogs dont just see food as a reward. Any thing that gets them excited could work, specially to make the food reward less present with time. It can be starting a game (i.e: fetch) that they love after the desired behaviour, before you open the door to take them out. Before putting the leash on if you are taking them out. Before offering their meals. Before you pet them or give them their toy, etc.... But wait for the experts to get back to you. In the meantime I am sure the extra information will help them to provide you correct advise. Thanks Jorge

Hi Guys. I am back yet with another question. So, looking at pros and cons of Raw feeding vs everything else I became an advocate for raw feeding dogs and that is what I want to go for. Specially nowadays that are extremely good brands facilitating ready raw food for all sorts of dogs with amazing quality. 1st question - What is your opinion on raw feeding? Also, how many times should I feed my german puppy dog? I was thinking about twice a day. 2nd question and most important one - How will I cope with the fast pacing "reward scheme" of clicker training when I have my dog on a raw diet? What treats to use etc.... as far as I can perceive it its so much easier to just give kibble as a reward. to carry them in the treat bag, etc.... In fact, I am yet to find a good quality raw treat for clicker training. How do you over come this problem? Do you mix the raw diet with kibble for clicker training (mix diet). Do you make treats yourself all the time with boiled chicken etc.... or do you buy raw treats? Any tips would be very welcome.

Hi. Thanks for the marvellous answers. I came across another interesting doubt. When you mention the association of a sound when teaching Look into my eyes I couldn’t stop wondering if associating his name (Leo) wouldn’t actually make more sense! Can you give me your thoughts? And if not wouldn’t we want to train our dogs to look at us when called by their names? Also, still on the clicker training subject. On your programme the first stage of every new training is 1-Desired behaviour 2-immediate click 3- reward. Wouldn’t you start with the verbal command? Let’s take sit as an example. You start by moving the treat above his head. Bum touches the floor, click, treat. Where as in my head I can’t stop thinking that introducing the verbal command “sit” before all of this will make it easier than to introduce it on a later stage!!! Verbal “Sit” cue. Hand gesture with lure. Desired behaviour. Click. Treat. What do you think? Thanks Jorge

Amazing answers. The investment in this program was totally worth it so far. I am still not sure if I should walk the puppy on leash using a collar or a harness or a holty. What is your opinion and why? Another thing I get a bit confused about when you are leash training your puppy/dog is that you should keep it short, stop when he pulls, etc... but if we are out for potty then am I not suppose to let the puppy wonder around so he goes to the toilet? Do you understand my confusion? we should lead the walk, and the puppy/dog should follow us, but isnt that going to affect his ability to find a place to go to the toilet? Also, you mention a clicker. I read recent scientific study cases that prove that clicker didnt improve significantly training compared to a verbal cue (yes, good boy, well done, etc...). Some people argue that the clicker will always produce the same sound and that is an advantage over a verbal cue. But in reality there is no proof of this. Quite the contrary. No one found any differences when tested. And I must admit I am reluctant to use a clicker only because then I would have to fase the dog out of it as I dont want to carry a clicker with me forever. Basically I dont see any advantages in using clickers, only negatives. Can you give me your honest opinion? Thanks Jorge

Hi Jennifer. Lovely reply. Thank you so much. Will definetely have a look at all those toys. 😇 In terms of training could you give me some tips on where to start etc? What to do first, for how long, how often. Where to move after ... Thanks Jorge

Hi there. Hope you're well. I have done tons of research, read some books, articles, surfed the you tube to the point i felt falling into a black hole and this has been so far what I think is the best content out there for dog training. So for that congratulations. Cant wait to put it into practice, which brings me to my questions. I am getting a 12 week old long coated german shepherd. Male, black and tan. And his name is going to be Leo. 1st - What do I need! Can you advise on what I need to buy and have ready/in place before the little one arrives. Bellow is my current list: - Crate -bed/blancket -Stainless steel bowls -grooming equipment (including oral hygiene, shampoos, brushes etc...) -Food -Treats - Collar and leash (On this note I would like to get your personal opinion on what I should use, collar vs harness etc....) 2nd - Puppy training program and priorities! Your content is fantastic but when it comes to puppy what things should I be focusing first, in what order, for how long, how many times a day, etc? It would be nice if you would give me a better understanding on where should i start and when to move forward and to what. Thanks Jorge